By Catriona Macpherson

INTRODUCTION

History has not always treated the Mongols kindly. Too much
emphasis has been placed on military campaigns and atrocities;
virtually ignoring their never-ending curiosity and thirst for
knowledge. Although they were not particularly original, their
conquests were instrumental in spreading knowledge and skills from
east to west and vice versa.

The nomads were not barbarians; they were born into a harsh
climate forcing them to be fierce and sometimes cruel by our
standards in order to survive. Being constantly occupied with
survival, they had no time to learn a more sophisticated way of
life, as had the sedentary peoples of China and Iran. Nomads were
not mentally inferior; but specialists in survival against severe
odds. It has been said they didn't know how to build a bridge to
cross a river. Of what need had they for a bridge? For one thing,
they might never need to cross a particular river at a particular
spot again since they were always on the move; for another, they
could cross rivers by piling their possessions on top of their
horses, and swimming them across, holding on to their tails. Why
tie themselves to a certain route, possibly going miles out of
their way, just because there was a bridge there to cross the
river. Sedentary people became too dependent on bridges, walls and
other accoutrements of "civilization", dulling their ability to
think and act quickly in a crisis. Not so the nomad, his wits were
always razor sharp, enabling him to face his environment with a
good chance to survive whatever came his way.

There are many levels of civilization, each with its
accompanying body of knowledge and customs. The nomads may not
have been on the top rung of the ladder but they certainly had
their place on the ladder.

The Mongols were only one of the nomad tribes which inhabited
the Asian Steppes, however not until unification under Jenghiz
Khan, did they become the Mongol nation. They had their own
culture and their own tribal laws. It was frequently necessary to
engage in internecine wars which were usually not unprovoked. The
strongest chief got the best grazing lands, and it was often
necessary to obtain and keep them by force. Following their
customs more often than not resulted in conflict with another
tribe.

Judging the Mongols and other nomad tribes by our standards,
something we sometimes unwittingly do, is not fair to them. I have
tried here to represent them as fairly and matter-of-factly as I
could. Let the reader be the judge.